A Simple Thank You
by Animaman
Summary: Sakura learns the hard and dreadful way about the consequences of her actions after trying to stick to the past. NaruHina, SakuOC. Mostly from Sakura's POV. Some Sakura Bashing, but Sakura will have a happy ending.
1. Return of a Comrade

A SIMPLE THANK YOU

**A SIMPLE THANK YOU**

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or the characters.

Point of Views: Sakura's, _normal_

I don't know how my luck, no my life, could get any worse than it has since that day two years ago. It all started when Naruto was finally able to bring Sasuke back to Konoha. It was about two weeks after he mastered the Fourth Hokage's signature jetsus: the Flying Thunder God Technique and finally getting his Rasengan up to 100-percent completion.

_Two years ago . . ._

_Sakura was running towards the room that Naruto and Sasuke were supposed to be sharing, hoping that they are okay. Just as she was outside the door, she heard laughter coming from inside the room. When she opened the door, she saw what nobody thought could be possible: There, on the beds were both Naruto and Sasuke laughing together, light heartedly. What surprised her most was that Sasuke was not using his sadistic laugh, but the same kind Naruto uses._

"_Well, what are you waiting for?" A familiar, voice coming from behind the door, causing her to almost jump out of her skin. A hand came from the other side of the door, and opened further to reveal their sensei, Kakashi, who looked like he has been trying hard to regain his senses, "Come join us already."_

_Sakura just smile and walked in. Just before the door closed behind her, Naruto could be heard saying "Hey Sasuke, want to hear about how me and Sakura were able to get the bells from Kakashi-sensei?"_

That was the first time I have ever got to see Sasuke that wasn't a total ass to anybody, even his friends, although he does still act like a smartass every now and then. One week later, both were out of the hospital. The council wasted no time in trying to show how much they despise Naruto, when they made an attempt to get rid of him. It was after the council's failed attempt to get Naruto banished from the village for attacking Sasuke, even though he was listed as a missing-nin, and most of the older residents of the village were backing them up, when things started to change. Tsunade was failing badly to prevent this, but something unexpected happen . . .

"_Naruto Uzumaki, we hereby banish you from . . ." Danzo was getting ready to pass sentence._

"_Wait!" Sasuke shouted, walking towards Naruto's side, "I would like to say a few words first." He said, the council nodded, hoping that their little prodigy would help add salt to the wound, but instead, "Are you really that blind? Are you really that ignorant?!" Causing everybody, except Naruto, to gasp, "Are you old farts really determined to get rid of something you fear and hate so much that you would rather throw him out instead of actually trying to get to know him, than you are no different from the Akatsuki!"_

This is my first Naruto story so enjoy. Please Read and Review. And feel free to give me some ideas. This is mainly from Sakura's POV, with a touch of NaruHina. Any other couples you would like to read about, let me know, just keep it boy/girl okay.


	2. Friends United

**A SIMPLE THANK YOU**

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or the characters.

Point of Views: Sakura's, _normal_

Last Chapter:

"_Naruto Uzumaki, we hereby banish you from . . ." Danzo was getting ready to pass sentence._

"_Wait!" Sasuke shouted, walking towards Naruto's side, "I would like to say a few words first." He said, the council nodded, hoping that their little prodigy would help add salt to the wound, but instead, "Are you really that blind? Are you really that ignorant?!" Causing everybody, except Naruto, to gasp, "Are you old farts really determined to get rid of something you fear and hate so much that you would rather throw him out instead of actually trying to get to know him, than you are no different from the Akatsuki!"_

And now:

"_This is impossible. You're suppose to that demon's worst enemy." Danzo said, in a mixture of anger and shock._

"_You really need to upgrade your information, you old fools, because those of you who would rather hang on to past you'll always end up missing whatever's right under noses, while the rest of us decided to focus on the here and now." Naruto said without fear, causing rage to form on those who still had a chip on their shoulder, before taking a couple of steps towards the council._

"_Those of us who have taken turn through the darkness for our own selfish needs; there has always been some light at end of the tunnel willing to help out even if the odds are against him." Sasuke said, taking his place next to his friend, while the rest of their little group started to join them._

"_Whenever we start to think that our destiny, our very fate is set in stone, all it takes is one person with enough courage to shatter that stone and prove to all of us that we are the ones who decide how our futures should be." Neji said._

"_Whenever we start judging people from how they act, how they look, then we start to learn all over again that we should never judge period and get to know each other better due to one person's determination to prove themselves in front of their accusers and those that doubt them what they are truly capable of." Ino followed up with._

"_I've learned to face my fears thanks to Naruto." Hinata said, "I've also learned that you got to face those that will always try to bring you down or else things would never get better."_

"_YES I HAVE SEEN THE POWER OF NARUTO'S YOUTH & IT IS WHAT KEEPS KONOHA SHINING!!!" Rock Lee said, in his usual enthusiasm, while everybody, except for Might Gai, just ignored him._

"_While I might be considered the smartest shinobi in our class, I would consider Naruto the most innovative shinobi because while even the brightest us can't come up with a decent enough plan of action, he always seems t come up with ones that actually work better than any of us could of thought of." Shikamaru followed._

"_Those of us who are treated like outcasts by those who are either too afraid, it is through Naruto that we get to be treated equally." Shino said, while he and Choji took their places._

"_Those of us that come from different families, clan or no clan, we've manage to complete each perfectly despite our little differences." Kiba yelled out with enthusiasm._

"_Those of us who have perfected in certain things are always there to cover the others back whenever needed because they themselves can't do it." Tenten said._

"_And here we are, helping our friend get through something that shouldn't be taking place in the first place." Sakura started saying, "Everything you accused him of is just an excuse for those of you to try not to learn anything about the person you ridicule."_

_Danzo decided to try to pull out the wild card he thought might work, "Yes, but will you still stay with him when we tell you a secret that we've kept for almost two decades?" He said._

"_We've already known the Kyubi for quite some time now, so don't even bother." Choji said._

"_How did you know?" One of the council members asked in shock._

"_I told them." Naruto said, "Considering it was my secret that I have every right to tell those that I can trust with my life and all twelve of them are here now."_

_Tsunade knew that she had the advantage she needed for Naruto's sake, "Well now, I see that this little of trial of yours took a nasty turn against you. The charges you were about to bring down on him became obsolete as soon as the person you were trying to use for your own personal gain sided with the person you were trying to dispose of." She said, in a tone that said 'try and stop me now,' "Naruto is still a ninja of this village and I've seen many people changing their opinion due to the boy's accomplishments, that if you were to get ride of him, they will surely demand your resignation from your positions."_

"_And how many of you will back this up?" Danzo asked, hoping that she was bluffing, only to become both deeply disappointed and slightly afraid when about almost 90% of the crowded started standing, even the clan heads were among them, even Hiashi Hyuga was among them._

That one little moment changed the opinions that a lot of people had about Naruto, although there were still those who just had trouble accepting the facts.

As days started to turn into weeks, things started to become calmer, almost back to normal with a few slight twists. Sasuke and I started dating for awhile, and to everyone's surprise, Naruto and Hinata started to get close as will. I don't how it happened, but the fan girl part in me, the part that I thought I got over, came back and ruined everything for me. After about a week of being together, I started treating Sasuke like he was a trophy that I've just won, even to those who have either already moved on or were never interested in him in the first place. I was even acting like Naruto was jealous of Sasuke so that I can literally knock him down a few pegs only to end up eating dirt when Naruto decides to defend himself because in his own words, 'enough is enough when it comes to the beatings.'

Even Sasuke had enough of being treated like a trophy . . .

_Sakura was walking towards Team 7's usual meeting place, happy as can be because she has Sasuke as her boyfriend, plus all the good things in her life, caused her to feel unstoppable. Just as she was approaching the bridge, she could hear her teammates having one of their friendly conversations._

"_So I see that you've got promoted to jounin, congratulations Naruto." Sasuke said, shocking the pink haired kunoichi._

"_Thanks. Hey, Sakura." Naruto said, and greeted their other teammate at the same time, "and I think some of those old fools are still having heart attacks because I'm not being held back by the council anymore."_

_Sakura was still in shock because her teammate now out ranked, "Man, Naruto, looks like you're one step closer to fulfilling your dream." She complimented her friend._

"_Yeah, and since I'm a Jounin now, ol' granny told me that I'll be doing solo missions for a while before she decides what to do with me, other than that, its fair game for me." He said, just as Sakura took her boyfriends left arm into her hands. "What took you so long Kakashi?" Naruto asked which was more like a rhetorical question when used on the person in question._

"_Oh, you know this and that." Kakashi replied while he walked up to the group. When he looked them over, it didn't take him long to notice the change in his blonde student, "So I guess I won't be bossing you around anymore, hey Naruto." He said, his eye showing how proud he is of his student._

"_Won't stop you from trying though." Naruto said, causing everybody to give a little chuckle, just as he checked his watch, "Well as much as I want to stick around, I have to head towards the Hokage's office. Tsunade said she was going to give me the stuff my father left for me."_

"_So she finally found some things belonging to the Uzumaki clan, Naruto?" Sakura asked, surprised that anybody actually had some information on Naruto's family._

"_Actually Uzumaki was my mother's clan from some other village, my father's clan was located somewhere in this village." Naruto answered, catching everybody completely off guard, "So I'll be using my father's family name."_

"_So what name will you be going by now?" Kakashi asked, just as curious as the other two members of his team._

"_Naruto Namikaze." He answered before disappearing in a yellow flash._

Sorry it took so long to update, I have a lot of stories to update. Next chapter, things start to go down hill for Sakura. Read and Review.


	3. Going downhill from here

**A SIMPLE THANK YOU**

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or the characters.

Point of Views: Sakura's, _normal_

Last Chapter:

"_So what name will you be going by now?" Kakashi asked, just as curious as the other two members of his team._

"_Naruto Namikaze." He answered before disappearing in a yellow flash._

And now:

"_Namikaze, I know I heard that name before, how about you Sasuke?" Sakura asked only to notice that her boyfriend's attention was somewhere else, "Sasuke? Kakashi-sensei? She turned to see that her sensei was looking in the same direction as her boyfriend. She looked towards the same direction, and noticed the Hokage Mountain, trying to figure out what the big deal was until she listens to the conversation between Sasuke and Kakashi._

"_I've always suspected that the fact that the two looked almost completely alike had to be more than a coincidence." Sasuke said, "And now, I can't help but feel sorry for Naruto when word breaks out."_

"_I've always suspected as much about his connection to my sensei, now it just confirms it." Kakashi said, while pulling out his usual book._

"_I don't get what you are talking about." Sakura said, before Sasuke decided to give his sensei asking that he could leave them alone for now. Kakashi nodded his head in acknowledgement before doing his usual *poof* exit._

"_Picture a whisker on all the heads and tell me which one looks the most familiar." Sasuke told her to. When he saw her eyes squint for a bit, and then become wide as dinner plates, that's where you heard the name, from the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. Konoha's Yellow Flash."_

"_But there is no way that idiot could actually be related to the Fourth. That would make him better than you!" Sakura yelled out, showing off her colors to Sasuke._

"_That idiot is my friend and my brother. He was also my teammate as well as yours. If it wasn't for him, then I wouldn't be here now, being your boyfriend. Now I'm starting to think that you were just using Naruto for your own selfish gain." Sasuke said with anger, while fighting the urge to use his Sharigan on the girl._

"_So what if I did. That moron is heads over me that he'll do anything just to make me happy, I'll gladly do it again." Sakura yelled out, before slapping her hands over mouth after revealing her attention. She was about to blame her inner self until it said 'Hey, don't blame me; I'm the one who actually loves Naruto. This time you'll have to take responsibilities for your own actions."_

_Sasuke, on the other hand, just found another reason to do what he came here to do, "Sakura, the reason why I wanted to talk to you today was that I wanted to end our relationship now."_

_Sakura looked like she was on the verge of tears, "But why Sasuke? I thought we were having a good time together!" She practically yelled out._

_Sasuke could no longer look at this pathetic girl, "I was happy with you, until you started acting like that stupid fan girl who would abandon everyone she cares about for her own purposes. For this past month, you've been clinging onto me like I'm some kind of trophy that you can showoff against the other girls, especially the ones that moved on. You treat Naruto like he was still the dead last, and try to abuse him again, only to have him show you how much stronger he is than you."_

_Sakura was too busy trying not to think that this was real. "That monster is not stronger than me. The only reason that he can do all of those things is because of the demon inside of him!" She yelled out, no longer caring who she hurts in the process._

_Sasuke looked like he wanted to kill her on the spot for trying to treat Naruto even worst than the way the villagers did, "You know you really are an idiot. Naruto is powerful enough on his own. The fact that he can keep the kyubi with very little effort means that he's stronger than any of us could ever be. You treating him like you did since we were still at the academy, and you're expecting everybody to be the same. Well guess what, Naruto, Hinata, Ino, just about everyone else, including me, have moved on." Sasuke yelled out, "And I don't want to have anything to do with you." He finished before walking away._

"_Sasuke, please don't do this to me, please!" Sakura was yelling out, tears were pouring down like a waterfall._

_Sasuke just stopped, but he didn't turn around this time, "I'm not doing anything. You only did it to yourself. And if you think Naruto is going to be there to pick you up again, then you better guess again because the one person that gave you his heart took it back and now Hinata is making better use of it." He said, before disappearing in a swirl of leaves._

_Sakura than collapsed onto her knees, crying hard hoping that this was all some kind of bad dream._

That day was just the beginning of the end for me. Right now, the clouds in the sky were just giving the village a light sprinkle, while everyone who was outside were just enjoying it since this was the first rain we had all summer. Just as I was passing by one of the barbeque restaurants, I stopped when I notice Naruto, Hinata, Sasuke and everyone who used to consider me their friend, just exchanging stories, jokes, and having a grand time together since this was one of the few times they have together due to their careers as ninjas.

It wasn't until the day after that I went over to talk to Ino about Sasuke breaking up with me when I found out a few more things . . .

_Ino was bored out of her mind since today was suppose to be her day off from missions, and here she was watching the flower shop instead of going on a date with Chouji. It wasn't until after she looked up as she heard the bell to the main door ring that she knew that her day just took a turn that she knew she isn't going to like. There in front of her eyes was a very down, and somewhat dangerous looking Sakura, and she already knew what it was going to be about since word has already spread all over the village that Sasuke dumped Sakura._

_"What's the matter, Sakura, still bummed over your relationship coming to a screeching halt?" Ino asked, trying her best to be a good friend to the pink-haired girl even though she wasn't acting like a friend to anyone else for the past few weeks._

_Sakura just gave a low sigh before nodding her head, "Yeah, and it still hurts. Do you think I can have a nice talk with my best friend again?"_

_Ino thought about it for a bit before walking towards the back to let her parents know where she was going to be before walking up to Sakura, "Come on, lets go have a walk around in the park while we talk." Ino said, while guiding her friend out the door._

_After they reached the park, Sakura spent the next few minutes telling Ino about what happened between her and Sasuke, while also making sure that she left out the parts involving Naruto. When she finished, she could see that Ino had a look on her face as if saying that she knew that she was hiding something._

_Ino was about to confront her friend about coming clean, before she turned to see a sight that she couldn't help but laugh at. Sakura was about to ask what was so funny until she heard the blonde say "Oh my god, he really is like a fox sometimes." She yelled out, while she was pointing her finger at the direction she was looking at._

_When she heard the word fox, she turned to see a sight that would have made her laugh, but she was getting angry do to her sore pride. There, sitting under a tree, was Hinata, with Naruto lying next to her with his head on her lap. What was making Ino laugh so hard was that while Hinata was scratching a spot behind one of Naruto's ears, one of his legs was just shaking like crazy with his eyes going up into his skull. This is when Sakura's pride took over and she charged over towards Naruto like she was going to murder him and didn't care what casualties came with him._

_Ino stopped laughing long enough to see that Sakura was stomping towards Naruto, and she was releasing a very dangerous aura from her body. 'I better stop her before she gets herself killed.' Was Ino's first thought before chasing after the girl._

Sorry, couldn't resist a cliffhanger. Read and Review, and do you think I should throw in Naruto's Sage Mode in the next chapter?


	4. Realization coming a little too late

**A SIMPLE THANK YOU**

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or the characters, otherwise Jiraiya would have been brought back alive after the Pein invasion.

Point of Views: Sakura's, _normal_

Last Chapter:

_This is when Sakura's pride took over and she charged over towards Naruto like she was going to murder him and didn't care what casualties came with him._

_Ino stopped laughing long enough to see that Sakura was stomping towards Naruto and she was releasing a very dangerous aura from her body. 'I better stop her before she gets herself killed.' Was Ino's first thought before chasing after the girl._

And now:

_Hinata couldn't resist a giggle due to her boyfriend's, for almost a month, antics, who was currently acting the same way Akamaru does whenever somebody starts scratching him in just the right places. "You know, for somebody who contains the strongest of all the demons, you can be quite the softy sometimes." She said, while hearing a slight moan coming from the blonde._

"_Containing him is easy. The only problem is that we share the other senses so right now he's feeling this too, and he tends to let his emotions get the best of __**me**__." He said, between moans._

_Both were too caught up with each other, they didn't even bother to notice the huge killer intent heading their way, until __***bam***__ a fist came down on them. When the dust settled, the only thing that was left were two logs, one of them shattered. "You know, I was actually enjoying my day off before you decided to ruin it." Came Naruto's voice to her right, who was standing next to Hinata, with his arms crossed in front of his chest, and both with angry glares._

"_You can't possibly be blaming Naruto for Sasuke dumping you, Sakura? Or are you just looking for somebody to be your personal punching bag?" Hinata asked. Ever since she and Naruto hooked up, she was less nervous, even her stuttering got snuffed out, and she became a much stronger person thanks to all of Naruto's encouragements and love._

_Sakura was fuming, because not only was Naruto showing his true abilities, but he has also moved on with Hinata and she wasn't going to take it anymore, "You, you're suppose to be the dead last, and yet even Sasuke acknowledges that you are the strongest. You were suppose to be worshiping the ground that I walk on; instead you decided to be with this tramp!" She yelled out, while pointing her finger._

_Hinata looked like she was getting ready to knock the block off of the pink-haired bitch before she felt Naruto placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, "Call her that again and I'll do worse than pound you to the ground, even if we were teammates." Naruto said, while releasing enough killer intent to prove his point, "Right now, I don't understand why you would just forget everything that we've been through just so you can relive the past. All you've done is tried to follow the example of those old fools who just wouldn't let go, and now here you are trying to blame me for all of the messes you've made for yourself. Now that Sasuke has decided to cut you off, you think that I would drop everything and be at your beacon. Time for a reality check, I've moved on, Sasuke has moved on, even most of the village has moved on, everything is not my fault, so pull your head out of ass and start taking responsibility for your own actions, you ungrateful whelp."_

_This did it, Sakura has finally snapped since the blonde just talked back to her and she was going to make him pay, "That's it, Uzumaki. I'm going to make you pay for that." Sakura yelled out as she charged towards him, with a chakra-enhance fist at the ready._

_Naruto just stood there, not even budging. When Sakura came in close enough to take a swing at him, he caught the fist with his bare hand, absorbing Sakura's chakra in the process, "That's Namikaze if you would please." He said before redirecting her chakra to his other fist, and sent her flying straight up into the air with a punch of his own. He turned to greet the rest of his friends, who were just enjoying the day, "Hey guys, what's up?"_

_The rest of the rookie twelve, plus a few new additions, returned the greeting as Ino went up to Chouji to give him a peck on the lips. Everyone has already hooked up with somebody, either each other or someone outside the group. Shikamaru is currently holding Temari's hand; Neji has his arm around Tenten's shoulder; Kiba is currently dating one of the nurse's from the ninja hospital; Lee actually found somebody who can not only calm him down enough, but also slap him upside the head whenever he started to go into one of his 'Powers of Youth' speeches; Even Shino was able to find a fellow ninja who wasn't afraid of either him or his bugs. What surprised Naruto somewhat was that Sasuke has actually hooked up with somebody, his old Team Hawk teammate Karin._

"_Man Sasuke, I see you move fast." Naruto said, "I guess you finally took my advice on following your heart for once."_

_This gave some of the others a reason to give a little chuckle, while causing the new couple to give a slight blush, "Yeah well she kind of talked me into it." Sasuke said._

_Karin decided to change the subject a little, "Hey Naruto, do you know where Sakura is?" She asked, just as said person crash landed onto the ground between them._

"_Oh she just decided to drop in." Naruto answered, "By the way, are we still up for lunch?" He asked._

"_Yeah we thought we come by and see if you want to try out that new all-you-can-eat place that just opened up last week?" Kiba answered._

"_Definitely, although I hope Chouji saves some food for the rest of us this time." Naruto said as he, with Hinata hanging on to his arm, walked towards the group._

"_Where do you think you're going, Demon?" Sakura asked, causing most of the group to give a mixture of gasps and glares, "You think I'll just let you walk away from me after ruining my life?"_

_Naruto didn't even turn to face her, "Clean out your ears because I'm only going to say this once: what you're going through is your own doing, and compared to what I had to grow up with, it means nothing. All of these years, instead of giving me a kind praise, even a simple thank you, you just forget everything you've accomplish with everyone just for your own selfish reasons. That's why I ended my pursuit for a spoiled brat who refuses to grow up!"_

_Sakura was steaming because once again this blonde just wouldn't take any of her punishment, "That's it Namikaze, you and me right now!" She yelled out, not thinking this whole thing through._

"_Considering the condition you're in, forget it." Naruto said, before he and the rest of the group started to walk away._

_Sakura just stood there, not believing that the same boy who never turns down a challenge has just shot her down. She was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard a conversation going on involving Naruto._

"_Hey Naruto, last week when I was walking past your place, I heard a loud moaning coming out of your window. Care to explain what was going on" Kiba started to ask._

"_Well let's just say that it started off when I was giving Hinata a little massage after her training session, and one thing led to another . . ." Naruto trailed off._

"_Wait you mean that you actually took it to __**the**__ next level? I didn't know you had it in you Naruto." Ino said, not resisting the urge to put her two since in._

"_Actually all I did was given her the massage. As for the rest, well you know what they say about the quiet ones."_

That was when I finally learned that Naruto was far beyond my reach. If Naruto was anything like fox, when they mate, they mate for life, and Naruto would never abandon those he care about.

Since that day, I was no longer apart of the gang since Sasuke and Naruto explained what happened, and to say that they were mad was an understatement, they were furious. Even my parents turned on me since that day. At first they were proud of my treatment of Naruto, since they still considered him a demon, but when I told him that he was the son of the Fourth, they then changed their tune and started to berate me for treating him the way I did, and for letting him getaway, like he was another version of Sasuke or something.

Even the Hokage was ticked off at me for treating somebody that was suppose to like her godson like the other villagers, so she did to me what she usually does to her teammate by tossing me out the window. I wasn't too fond of the landing since it was onto a cart full of garlic and tomatoes.

Now I'm looking through the window to see that everyone was truly happy. The whole gang has gotten married to their loved ones. Naruto and Hinata were holding their one and a half year old twins, a boy and a girl. The boy had his mother's blue hair, and his father's blue eyes, while the girl has blonde hair and her mother's eyes, both giving the same smile Naruto always wears. Sasuke was talking to Naruto while Karin was holding a bundle in her arms. The rest were either holding their kid, expecting one, or just waiting patiently for their turn.

Seeing all this makes me realize how much I have been missing out on. If I wasn't acting like a selfish bitch to everyone, than I would at least have a chance to be happy, instead I'm all alone, with everyone giving me the same treatment that Naruto used to receive. The one thing that a lot of people have said about me is that I might be the smartest kunoichi when it comes to book smarts, yet I was a major idiot when it comes to people and now I'm finally paying the price.

I'll stop here for now since I'm running out of ideas for the moment. I'll try to squeeze out about another chapter or two before I call it quits. Should I end it as a NaruHinaSaku, or a NaruHina Saku/OC? Read and Review, and give me your answer.


	5. A Nice Happy Little Ending

**A SIMPLE THANK YOU**

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or the characters.

Point of Views: Sakura's, _normal_

My life couldn't get any better after today. Right now I'm cradling my daughter, to whom I spent most of the day giving birth to. Even though I'm still a little tired and look like hell, I can still feel my husband's hand on my shoulder. I looked up at him, to see that he was wearing a big smile on his face, before I turned towards my friends, who were all giving me their smile. I was even gladder when I was given another chance at having their friendship again, and this time I'm not going to waste it.

It took some insistence from both my husband, who was just my boyfriend, and the help of three of the wives of Kiba, Lee, and Shino, to convince us that we should try to forgive and forget, even though the latter is hard to forget considering the names I used on Naruto all those years ago.

_The atmosphere was like being in a sauna. Right now all the adults were in the living room of the Namikaze estate, while the parents left their kids with Kakashi and Shizune, who wanted to practice when they have their own, and in Naruto's and Sasuke's case, a way to payback Kakashi for all those Team 7 meetings that he was always late for._

"_I don't know about this Leon . . ." Sakura started to say, wanting to anywhere else but here right now._

"_There is no backing out of this Sakura. I can't stand to see you all happy one minute only to wallow in your own misery the next. Right now you all need to get this done now." Leon said, while getting up, "Anyway, Daisy, Violet, Nat, we should leave them alone to fix their differences."_

_All three nodded before giving their husbands a look that spelt danger if they chose not to cooperate with anyone on this._

_When they left, Ino couldn't help but ask "What would they have done if you chose not to come?" Causing all three men to shiver, Shino most of all._

"_Daisy threatened to neuter both me and Akamaru, which in turn caused Akamaru to turn against me." Kiba explained, causing the rest of the males to cover their jewels._

"_Violet said she would shave off my head and make me look like Ibiki." Lee said this time causing everybody to shiver since that would even make them more than willing to go through with this._

"_What about you Shino?" Naruto asked his friend._

"_A can of Raid." Shino said. While the rest don't find that scary, they can still sympathize since they all knew how important bugs are for someone like Shino and his clan._

"_Anyway, who should start?" Hinata asked, not sure how to start this since they and Sakura had split apart on really bad terms._

"_I want to start since I'm the reason behind this." Sakura said, getting their attention. Having all those eyes on her didn't help her much, yet she knew that it has to be said if she doesn't want to go through life as a hated person. 'Now or Never.' She thought. "I want to apologize for the way I acted ever since Sasuke came back. I was so determined for things to be the way they were, that everything went over my head. When Sasuke asked me out for the first time, I felt like that little fan girl whose dream has just come true, that for some reason I had to act like nothings changed before he left, which included treating everybody like we were just fresh out of the academy."_

"_I know, although I can't help but feel a little bit responsible for that." Ino said, guilt evident in her voice, "When we were little, I've chose to help you out with your little problems involving the bullies and your little insecurities, I never even bother to realize how selfish I was back then. I was too focused on my looks and my reputation, that in the end, it felt like I help created a monster."_

"_Actually you did help me with my self confidence and everything, the rest I came up with on my own. I want to also apologize to Hinata, because I was way out of line when I let my bruised ego get the best of me and I hope that you aren't sore with me about the way I treated you." Sakura said, looking at the blue haired girl._

_Hinata just looked at her for a bit, "While I do understand the reason behind why you were so upset, that I will forgive. The one thing I probably would have trouble forgiving is how you started to act like some of the villagers still do when it comes to my husband." She said her voice half forgiving, half over protective._

"_I don't blame you, I would feel the same way, and Sasuke," Sakura continued, getting her ex's attention, "I'm sorry for acting like the proper girlfriend by treating you like some kind of trophy. I realize that I wasn't really in love with you in the first place it was just so I could fit in with the other girls, and I really hope we can be friends again."_

_Sasuke just looked at her for a little bit before giving his reply, "I know that you were a little too excited about dating me, it's not just how you treated me, but rather how you treated everybody else, especially Naruto." He said, "Although I would still like to be friends with you again, the only thing is that I'll leave it up to Naruto to decide if you're worth the risk or not." The rest of the group nodded in agreement since in a way, Naruto was the lynch pin that kept everybody together._

_Sakura took an even deeper breath because the last person she needs to apologize to is the one that she abused the most, not only apologize, but owe him something else, "Naruto, you're the one I owe the biggest apology to. You've always treated me like a friend, even though I never even bother acting like one. All I ever did was treat you like you were nothing more than a nuisance, and whenever you do something to help me, or even something phenomenal, I would berate you and try to give Sasuke all the credit, even though he didn't want it. To tell the truth, I did enjoy our time together while Sasuke was gone, and I never forgot them, the only problem was that I was too focused on myself to even care. I even started to treat you the same way the villagers did, even called you the same names you were forced to grow up with." She said, a small tear coming out of her eyes, "I also still owe you a big thank you for being there for me as a friend and a teammate. I also thank you for risking your life for me, and also for all the things that you deserve credit for. Right now I really hope that you would give me this chance to actually become a true friend to you."_

_Naruto just sat there for a bit, making sure that the girl in front of him was telling the truth or not. When he picked up no lies, "I'm welling to give it a shot," He said, getting her attention, "Although just don't expect old wounds to heal so quickly." He finished with one of his trademark smiles, "You can come back in now."_

_Sakura couldn't help but feel a heavy burden lift off her chest, "Thank you."_

_When the rest of the group was with their loved ones, Leon couldn't help but ask, "By the way Naruto, I can't help but wonder what move you used to defeat Sasuke?" When he asked this, he couldn't help but notice that the subject was a little touchy, especially for guys._

"_Leon, the one thing Naruto is capable of is finishing a fight using the simplest of techniques, and in our fight, even though he could use his strongest technique against me, he went for a move that is both effective, and very painful, even when I'm still in my cursed seal form." Sasuke explained._

"_Okay, so what attack did he use?" Leon asked again._

_Naruto just fidgeted for a bit, "Let's just say that the curse seal doesn't strengthen every part of man's body, especially down below." He explained, in a way that told him not to ask for anymore details._

_He didn't catch on until he noticed the uncomfortable looks that the males were giving, and when realization dawned on him, his hands instinctively covered his privates, with only a small __**'oh'**__ as a response._

And that was only about a little over a year ago, it even took a little convincing from Naruto to convince Tsunade to forgive me as well. Afterwards, things started to get better for me, since I was now a part of the gang again. A few months later, me and Leon were married, with all of our friends there to attend, with Ino, Hinata, and Tenten as my bridesmaids.

Now here we are at the hospital, greeting a new life into this world. Naruto is standing there in his hokage robes, with his children, and a five month pregnant Hinata. Sasuke is holding his son, while Karin is holding their newborn daughter. Lee is currently holding Violet, who in turn is holding their young daughter, alongside everyone else with their own little family. The only thing we can do now is to make sure that this next generation gets to live a nice happy life, and to help them avoid the same mistakes we made. Right now though, my little one is crying to be fed, and everyone is gracious enough to give us some private time.

"I'll be leaving you alone as well." Leon says, while giving me a kiss on the lips just before he leaves. I just sit there with a small smile on my face. Yes, my life just continues to be better since I have everything I need, and then some.

Well, here is the ending. Hope you like it, and if you were expecting me to throw in an explanation on how Sakura and Leon met, I just wasn't in the mood. Read and Review, and have a Merry Christmas.


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